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Source: Arabia.net – agencies
In a move likely to renew tensions with Greece after a relative decline in recent days, the Turkish Navy issued a notification Sunday night saying that the Turkish ship Uruk Reis would conduct a seismic study in the eastern Mediterranean in the next ten. days.
The maritime notification indicated that two other ships, Ataman and Genghis Khan, as well as Uruk Reis, will continue to operate in an area that includes the south of the Greek island of Kastelorizo, from Monday to October 22.
Bilateral talks
And there is a dispute between the two countries over overlapping demands for sovereignty over oil and gas resources in the region. The foreign ministers of Turkey and Greece met last week and agreed to hold bilateral talks on the differences.
This comes as Turkey’s Foreign Minister announced yesterday that Ankara will host the next exploratory talks with Greece.
During a meeting with his Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias in the Slovak capital Bratislava, Davutoglu revealed that they had agreed to hold exploratory talks between the two countries and rebuild trust.
The Greek island of Kastelorizo off the southern coast of Turkey – France Press
Exploratory talks had been on hold between the two countries since 2016.
The two ministers met on the sidelines of the Global Security Forum, the first since the outbreak of the Eastern Mediterranean crisis.
An opportunity for diplomacy
Notably, Turkey had withdrawn Uruk Reis from the disputed waters “to give diplomacy a chance” ahead of an EU summit.
While the European Union confirmed after the summit that it could punish Turkey if it continued its operations in the region, a step Ankara said would lead to increased tension in relations between Turkey and the European Union.
Last month, the president of the European Commission, in a speech before the European Parliament, warned Turkey against any attempt to “intimidate” its neighbors, in the context of the dispute over gas resources that Turkey faces with Greece in the eastern Mediterranean.
The dispute escalated on August 10, when Turkey sent a ship to explore natural gas and warships into waters it claims with Greece. The tension peaked in late August, when the two countries held parallel military exercises.
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